A Memory Charm,also known as Lockhart Memory Charm[1] or Forgetfulness Charm[2] (Obliviate) is a spell that can be used to erase memories from an individual's mind. The incantation for this charm is Obliviate. It is different from the charm that creates false memories[3].

Dangers

If performed improperly, a Memory Charm can erase significant portions of an individual's memory and cause brain damage, with difficulty in recovery. For instance, Gilderoy Lockhart attempted to wipe the memories of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley during the events surrounding the re-opening of the Chamber of Secrets. However, Ron's damaged wand backfired, and caused Lockhart to suffer extreme amnesia. He is currently a permanent resident in the Janus Thickey Ward of St Mungo's.[6] Despite his memories recovered enough to do joined-up writings and his love of signing fan letters, he never fully recovered.

Also, Barty Crouch Sr. placed a Memory Charm on Bertha Jorkins to try to make her forget her discovery that he was keeping his son in captivity. However, the charm he put was too strong so it damaged her memory permanently, making her chronically forgetful about other things as well.[7]

In 1997, Voldemort had Antonin Dolohov and Thorfinn Rowle tortured with the Cruciatus Curse after they failed to captureHarry Potter. Hermione Granger had cast Memory Charms on them so as to cover the trio's tracks, and it appears that the charms were not broken by torture, since the Death Eaters remained unaware that Ron Weasley was with Harry and Hermione, rather than sick at home with spattergroit as had been claimed, for months afterwards.[8] This may mean that a certain level of torture is necessary to break the charm, or that the torturer needs to be specific on wanting to break it, rather than just inflicting the pain.

Since Lockhart's backfired Memory Charm has never been broken through, it is possible that torture is the only method of complete recovery, as it is doubtful that St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries would commit crimes against humanity just to recover Lockhart's memory. It is also possible, however, that since it was cast improperly, Lockhart's memory was actually erased permanently with no chance of recovery whatsoever.

Gilderoy Lockhart rose to fame by tracking down less-than reputable characters who had accomplished mighty feats, questioned them in detail about it, placed Memory Charms on them to remove all recollection of the feat, claimed credit for it, and published a book on it. This was revealed to Harry and Ron in the Chamber of Secrets venture.

Used after an attempted ambush of her, Harry and Ron at the Lovegood House in 1998 to wipe his memory of the conversation he had with the trio about the Deathly Hallows to ensure that Xenophilius was unable to tell the Death Eaters that Ron was with Harry and Hermione.[8]

Etymology

The incantation "obliviate" may be derived from the Latin oblivisci, meaning "to forget", or the English word oblivion, defined as "the fact or condition of forgetting or having forgotten"[11].

It may be derived from the Latin term oblivio, which also means "to forget"

Behind the scenes

Hermione using the Memory Charm on her parents.

In Chapter 9 of Deathly Hallows, just prior to erasing Antonin Dolohov and Thorfinn Rowle's memories, Hermione says that she has never performed a Memory Charm before, despite having already altered her parents' memories.[8] However, J. K. Rowling has said this was a different charm[3], which alters memories rather than removes them.

Despite Rowling's statement that the charm Hermione used on her parents was not the same, in the Part 1 film adaption, Hermione uses the actual Memory Charm to eradicate her mother and father's memories of her.

However, it all still fits in as in the film Hermione doesn't say she hasn't used it before.

Either symbolically or by actual magic, when Hermione performed the charm on her parents, all images of her in their family pictures were erased as well.

As Bertha managed to remember about Barty Crouch Jr. after Voldemort tortured her and broke the charm, it is possible that the charm simply suppresses memories, as opposed to erasing them. However, when Lockhart suffers a backfiring Memory Charm, it seemed that his memories were irreversibly erased.

In the German translation, the incantation is sometimes translated as Amnesia, in the Czech translation "Zapomeň/te" and in Italian it is used Oblivion while in other cases remains Obliviate.